Graduate appointed as Chief Magistrate

A University of Wolverhampton graduate has been appointed to one of the top roles in the judiciary.

Tanweer Ikram has been appointed by the Queen as Deputy Senior District Judge (Chief Magistrate).

As Chief Magistrate, he will have leadership responsibility for the 300 District Judges (Magistrates’ Courts) and Deputy DJMCs across England and Wales.

He will be based at Westminster Magistrates’ Court with effect from 31 March 2017.

The 51-year-old was called to the Bar in 1990 and admitted as a solicitor in 1993 after graduating from Wolverhampton Polytechnic, now the University of Wolverhampton.

In 2015 he was awarded an Honorary Degree of Doctor of Law from the University’s Faculty of Social Sciences for his contribution to law.

Deputy Senior District Judge (Chief Magistrate) Ikram said: “It doesn't matter who you are or where you start from, you must decide where you want to be and have the confidence to go for it. I started at Wolverhampton Polytechnic and it has done me well.”

After graduating from Wolverhampton Polytechnic, Tan Ikram went on to become a partner in a regional law firm. In 2007, he was elected President of the London Criminals Courts’ Solicitors Association.

Tan was appointed to the office of District Judge (Magistrates’ Courts) in 2009.

In 2012, he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society for Arts (FRSA) and in 2013, he was appointed the Deputy Lead Diversity and Community Relations Judge and is ‘ticketed’ as a specialist judge in extradition.